We feel increasingly isolated.

We feel increasingly isolated.

Because of the lack of public gathering places, people have come to rely on businesses and malls as social spaces. The closure of long-standing, Chinese-speaking stores deeply fractures the sense of community people have built over time.

There is not enough community activity space in Chinatown, especially for families and seniors. While benevolent associations are social gathering spaces, they are private, male-led institutions with closed memberships and do not provide public programming like community centres.

The lack of culturally competent and language-appropriate services from both government and non-profit organizations reinforces social isolation and inequality, as well as divides the community along racial lines.

Seniors make up a large proportion of Chinatown’s population and struggle to age in place because the neighbourhood does not support intergenerational relationships and spaces.